Watch for 2025 Summary of Benefits and Coverage Documents
Starting September 5, cooperatives will receive a Message Center notification when summary of benefits and coverage (SBC) documents are available on the Employee Benefits website. Distribute the SBCs either with your annual enrollment materials or by November 1, 2024 (whichever is sooner).
The SBC is a legally required disclosure that helps participants compare and select coverage under the NRECA Group Benefits Program. It describes certain plan exclusions and cost-sharing and gives examples of whether certain services would be covered. It also provides a link to the Department of Labor’s glossary of frequently used health insurance terms. Although some examples of covered services may not apply to your co-op’s plan, by law they must be included in the SBC.
NRECA provides SBCs for:
- Your co-op’s NRECA Medical Plan renewed for January 2025
- Stand-alone well-being programs (update the highlighted fields before distribution)
- NRECA dental and vision plans for which your co-op pays 100% of the premium.
Note that SBCs aren’t required for the VSP Vision Plan.
Co-ops that offer health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) must create SBC notices. You may use the model notices available on the pages linked above. Download the sample(s) and update the highlighted sections to reflect your plan’s provisions. The models are only samples, so please review them with your legal counsel before use.
You do not need to distribute a health flexible spending account SBC if your co-op:
- does not contribute to the account,
- provides a dollar-for-dollar match, or
- contributes less than $500.
Give SBCs to everyone who is eligible for the plans that your co-op will offer during 2025. Eligible individuals include:
- employees, retirees, directors, and your retained attorney
- surviving dependents
- COBRA plan participants
- new enrollees at the time of first enrollment, and
- individuals with HIPAA special enrollments
You must also give the SBC to any participant who asks for a copy within seven days after their request.
For complete information about your SBCs, including which plans require them, when to distribute them, and how to use an electronic distribution method, review the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) page on the Employee Benefits website.
Finally, complete the online acknowledgement form. To access the acknowledgement form, follow the link in the original SBC Message Center notification or go directly to the Group Plan Documents page. You can acknowledge distributing SBCs for multiple plans in one step. If you have questions about the content of your SBCs, contact the benefits compliance team at 866.673.2299, option 7, or group.compliance@nreca.coop.